Family run since 2007  ·  Licensed General Contractor  ·  CSLB #896811  ·  Mon–Fri 8:00–4:30

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Decks & Outdoor Living

A deep flat backyard in Campbell and a slope above Los Gatos need completely different decks. We build both, along with the patio covers, hardscape and planting that go around them.

The climate here makes a yard usable most of the year, which is why outdoor space is not the add-on it is in most of the country. In San Jose, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale and Campbell the rear lots are often deep and flat, so the work is really about giving that space some shape — a raised deck off the back door, a covered patio you can sit under in August, an outdoor kitchen, planting that does not need constant water. Above Los Gatos and Saratoga the same request means engineered footings, posts stepping down a slope, and material carried in by hand because a truck cannot get around the house. Elevated hillside decks are structural work, and they get engineering and a permit. A low deck on a flat lot sometimes does not, and we will tell you which one you have.

Drainage is the part people skip. Our rain arrives in concentrated stretches, and a new patio or deck that sheds water back toward the house or over the fence line creates a problem you will be chasing for years. We grade and drain before we finish. Landscaping is part of what we do rather than another trade for you to chase, so irrigation, planting, hardscape, lighting and fencing all run on the same job and the same schedule. And because we have our own carpentry shop, benches, pergolas, privacy screens and outdoor cabinets get built for the space instead of bought and made to fit.

What’s included

  • Site and slope review, including where water goes once the surface is built
  • Engineered footings, posts and framing for elevated and hillside decks
  • Permit drawings and inspections when the height or structure calls for them
  • Deck framing and surfacing in wood or composite, with railings to match
  • Patio covers, pergolas and shade structures sized for South Bay summer sun
  • Outdoor kitchens, built-in benches, privacy screens and storage built in our shop
  • Hardscape — patios, walkways, steps, seat walls and retaining walls
  • Landscaping: grading, irrigation, planting and low-water design suited to a dry summer
  • Low-voltage lighting, gates and fencing

Why R Twyns Construction

We are a family-run licensed general contracting and remodeling company (CSLB #896811), building in the South Bay since 2007. Tim Reynolds owns the company and his VP Ben runs the work, so the people who price your job are the people who are on it. The cabinets and finish carpentry come out of our own shop, which is what an older house needs when nothing in it is square. And we tell you what a job actually involves before you commit to it — the load-bearing wall, the drain line, the permit — rather than after the walls are open.

Comprehensive Custom Deck and Outdoor Living Services

Do we need a permit for a deck?
It depends on how high it sits and what it is attached to. A low platform on a flat lot often does not. An elevated deck, anything with stairs and railings at height, or a hillside structure on engineered footings does. We check it for your specific situation rather than guessing, because an unpermitted structure comes back on you at resale.
Wood or composite?
Both work here. Wood looks better on an older home and costs less up front, but it wants sealing and it moves. Composite costs more at the start and gives you back the maintenance weekends, though the framing underneath is still wood and still needs to be built right. We will price both and let you decide.
Can you build on our slope above Los Gatos?
Yes. Sloped lots mean drilled or stepped footings, engineered posts and beams, and a plan for getting material to the back of the property when a truck cannot reach it. That access issue is a real line in the estimate, not a surprise later. We would rather show you that number early.
Do you do the landscaping, or only the deck?
Both. Grading, drainage, irrigation, planting, hardscape, lighting and fencing are part of what we take on, which means one crew and one schedule instead of a deck builder and a landscaper pointing at each other. It also means the drainage gets solved once, correctly, before anything is planted over it.
How do we know an elevated deck will hold up?
Because it is engineered, inspected and built by a licensed general contractor. We work under CSLB #896811 and have since 2007. A raised deck carries people, furniture and load in a seismic area, and it is not a job for someone who cannot show you a license and current workers’ comp.

Serving the South Bay and the Peninsula

Ready when you are.

San Jose, Santa Clara, Palo Alto, Cupertino, Los Gatos and Sunnyvale — plus Mountain View, Redwood City, Campbell, Saratoga, Los Altos, Monte Sereno, Morgan Hill, Gilroy and Hollister, across Santa Clara, San Mateo, Alameda and San Benito counties.

Mon–Fri 8:00–4:30 · CSLB #896811